During the process of printing, laser printers and copy machines produce a gas called ozone. Health problems associated with ozone gas pollution include headaches, eye irritation, nose irritation, throat irritation and dryness to the eyes, nose and throat. In addition to ozone gas, toner dust and particulate matter can present further health risks to office machine users.
Most existing office machines are equipped with filters to alleviate the adverse affects of air pollution. However, a printer""s or copy machine""s temperature may rise by over 10% due to filter clogging. The clogged filter also makes the fan slow down due to reduced air flow, which in turn can produce increased printed page defects and also increase the danger of major components failing.
Although periodic filter replacement can cut down on the health risks and adverse financial impact associated with office machine air pollution, many filters are not easily accesible to non-technicians. Further, because saturated and clogged filters cause machine breakdown, many persons simply remove a machine filter rather than properly replacing it. As a result, many office machines have no filters, increasing air pollution and the risks associated with the pollution.
An associated effect of office machine air pollution is the adverse smell of the machine exhaust. In conjunction with the expulsion of ozone gas and particulates, the exposure to such smells can have deleterious health effects on users.
Consequently, there is a need for a filter device for office machines that is easily replaceable by the machine users. Further, there is a need to eliminate adverse smells associated with office machine exhaust.
Accordingly, the present invention answers these needs by providing a wet filter apparatus and method for filtering office machine exhaust, and providing a more desirable scent to users.
The present invention provides an apparatus and method for filtering office machine exhaust to reduce health-risks to users and internal damage to machines.
The present invention further provides an apparatus and method for filtering office machine exhuast that can be used by machine users that are non-technicians.
An aspect of the present invention is a wet filtering apparatus and method for limiting the expulsion of ozone and toner and particulate pollutants from office machines into the ambient air.
A further aspect of the present invention is the conducting of ethereal oils along a foam filter stick to remove air pollutants from office machine exhaust.
A further aspect of the present invention is to provide desirable scented oils to control adverse smells from office machine exhaust.